Air quality concerns persist in Quebec as wildfires slow and residents return home
MONTREAL — Air quality remained a concern in several regions of Quebec on Saturday as some residents returned home after evacuations due to wildfires.
The province’s forest fire prevention agency, SOPFEU, said wildfire progression remains slow, with 121 fires still active in the province, while firefighters battle 32 priority fires.
The Department of Public Security said Saturday that weather conditions and firefighters have contained several blazing threats in the regions of Abitibi-Témiscamingue, the North Shore, Mauricie and northern Quebec.
But Environment Canada has issued a smog advisory for the regions of Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Gatineau and Mont-Laurier. The department recommended that children with asthma and those with respiratory or heart conditions avoid strenuous physical activity outdoors.
The mayor of Lebel-sur-Quévillon announced on Friday that the 2,000 residents who evacuated the northwestern Quebec city will be able to return to their original homes on Sunday, two weeks after leaving.
Essential workers returned Saturday to prepare for homecoming surrounded by trenches as the nearby wildfire remains a concern for authorities and the 260 US and Portuguese firefighters arriving Friday and Saturday to help fight the blaze.
“Our retailers are ready — gas stations, convenience stores, supermarkets,” Mayor Guy Lafrenière said in a video on the municipality’s Facebook page Saturday morning, declaring that both those businesses and the pharmacy will be open on Sunday.
In Abitibi-Témiscamingue, the provincial government said the 3,000 residents of Senneterre could return to the community, as could the 750 residents of Normétal.
The ban on forest walks remained in some sectors of Abitibi-Témiscamingue, the North Shore, Mauricie, Northern Quebec and Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on June 17, 2023.
